Broadband communications access, on which our society and economy is growing increasingly dependent, is not readily available to users on board mobile platforms such as aircraft, ships, and trains. While the technology exists to deliver the broadband communications services to mobile platforms, conventional solutions are currently commercially unfeasible due to the high costs for service or due to low data rates. The conventional solutions have typically only been available to government/military users and/or to high-end maritime markets such as cruise ships. To attract business users, the broadband communication services must provide acceptable data rates at a reasonable price. The broadband communications services must also be designed within guidelines that are required for networks or nodes that are connected to the Internet.
Internet web sites are identified by a public address. Routers and switches use the public address to route IP packets. Public addresses are considered a scarce resource. Requests for public address space from American Registry for Internet Numbers (ARIN) are scrutinized for efficient usage. For example, aircraft Internet systems will require a significant number of IP addresses for routers, servers, users, and other hosts.